Founders Without Borders: The Region’s Tech Ecosystem Finds Its Voice in Berlin

Berlin — a city synonymous with reinvention — recently played host to a uniquely regional experiment that married high-level policy insight with unfiltered founder perspective. Set against the atmospheric backdrop of 8000 Vintages, a Georgian wine sanctuary in the heart of Kreuzberg, the “Tech Without Borders” evening gathered stakeholders from five nations across the Caucasus and Central Asia to spark a conversation larger than any one country.

The event was co-anchored by Shota Dighmelashvili, Editor-in-Chief of Forbes Georgia, and Nodo Ivanidze, co-founder of Global Tech Weekend. As part of the broader GITEX Europe constellation, the evening featured two back-to-back panels — one institutional, one entrepreneurial — that together mapped a tech region in motion.

Institutions on the Move

Moderated by Nodo Ivanidze, the opening panel brought together senior figures from Kazakhstan’s Astana Hub, Armenia’s Microsoft Innovation Center, Uzbekistan’s IT Park Europe office, and Azerbaijan’s Innovation and Digital Development Agency — brought together, along with Georgia, to explore digital infrastructure, funding mechanisms, cross-border collaboration, and the limits of centralized innovation.

Armenia’s Marie Barseghyan offered insights into bridging public-private dynamics in a rapidly digitising landscape. Kazakhstan’s Magzhan Madiyev outlined how the country’s tech zones are evolving into venture pipelines. Vsevolod Li from shared Uzbekistan’s approach to diaspora capital and legal innovation, while Azerbaijan’s Salar Imamaliyev called for synchronised digital policies across the region.

The speakers didn’t shy away from the challenges: divergent regulatory standards, fragmented legal environments, and politicised innovation priorities. Yet, in conversations, a deeper truth emerged — the region’s shared constraints may well be its connective tissue. What once divided is now shaping the contours of practical cooperation.

That ethos—of turning fragmentation into force—was captured by Nodo Ivanidze, who helped shape and steer the evening’s agenda. As he noted, Global Tech Weekend isn’t just about convening the region’s brightest minds, but anchoring them within a wider orbit:

“It’s a commitment to unlocking our shared potential by connecting local ecosystems into a global rhythm,” he said. “Together with our partners in the USA and Saudi Arabia, our mission is to link the Caucasus and Central Asia with similar crossroads worldwide.”

His goal is to create a network where founders can grow globally without needing to leave their roots behind.

Founders Without Borders

If the first panel laid the policy scaffolding, the second, moderated by the Editor in Chief of Forbes Georgia Shota Dighmelashvili, was all about the builders. These were the startup founders navigating real-world frictions: deploying AI tools in analogue economies, scaling B2B platforms across fragmented markets, and convincing risk-averse users to trust innovation.

Among the featured founders:

Iako Jikia of Helio AI (Georgia)
Bolat Sultankulov of ARLAN Biotech (Kazakhstan)
Tatev Avagyan of Nomiq (Armenia)
Dilmurod Nasibullaev of K-Tech (Uzbekistan)
Adil Gasimov of Push30 (Azerbaijan)

Their stories revealed not just ambition, but a common thread: grit.

“At Helio AI, we’re building globally scalable technology that’s already reshaping how companies hire,” said Iako Jikia. “In under a year, we’ve partnered with 300+ brands across six countries, proving product-market fit and cross-border demand. The region gave us the talent and the urgency to build fast and validate in real markets.”

Nasibullaev, whose SmartX360 platform introduces building automation to legacy environments, framed the trust deficit plainly: “Every market has its own hidden details that are not available to foreign players. Any startup and business in Central Asia is built on trust and personal customer care.”

Gasimov described Push30’s navigation of the wellness-tech space in Azerbaijan, balancing regional expansion with hyperlocal UX needs. Avagyan addressed Armenia’s talent-export trap — the overreliance on outsourcing — and called for bolder product-centric visions. Sultankulov, building frontier biotech, emphasised the need for regulatory harmonisation and long-term capital that transcends national boundaries.

The exchanges didn’t romanticise regional unity. Instead, they peeled back the layers — from funding gaps and talent flight to misaligned incentives across borders. But beneath the candid accounts, a shared mindset was visible: collaboration may be complicated, but it’s no longer optional.

Forbes Georgia’s Tech Pivot

Forbes Georgia’s presence in Berlin signalled a deeper shift in the region’s media landscape. Since Shota Dighmelashvili stepped in as Editor-in-Chief in mid-2023, the publication has repositioned itself at the centre of regional innovation discourse — not as an observer, but as an active player.

Over the past year, it has built new infrastructure for identifying and elevating startups across the Caucasus and Central Asia. Forbes Georgia now produces data-backed rankings of early-stage companies, partners with major international conferences like GITEX Europe, and curates its own programming, including guest stages and roundtables, at leading tech gatherings. It has co-developed civil-tech hackathons, fostered editorial collaborations with universities and think tanks, and taken a digital-first turn, investing in formats that make insight move faster.

This strategic shift has made Forbes Georgia more than a publication. It’s become a connective tissue — one that links founders, investors, policymakers, and institutions across fragmented markets and helps surface the region’s innovation stories on a global stage.

As Shota Dighmelashvili put it: “We are witnessing a moment where small ecosystems — if properly networked — can become exponential. The next frontier isn’t just about building globally, but about reimagining locality as a strength. In Georgia, the Forbes brand can serve as growth infrastructure. My hope is that what we’ve built at Forbes Georgia can be adapted to support other emerging hubs that need trusted platforms to connect ideas, talent, and capital across borders.”

Next Stop: Tbilisi 2025

The Berlin gathering was also a prelude. On June 20, 2025, the movement continues in Tbilisi with Global Tech Weekend’s flagship event: “Shaping the New Era.” Held at Radio City, the conference will span AI, Web3, gaming, FinTech, AgriTech, media, and digital marketing — bringing together leading voices from global platforms and powerhouse IPs. Among the headline speakers are Jessica Tams of Atari, Ruben Veiga from Roblox, Katie Soo of DICE and HBO Max, and John Nee, the publishing veteran behind both Marvel and DC Comics. They’ll be joined by Patrick Lee, co-founder of Rotten Tomatoes; Maya Rogers, CEO of Tetris; Israel Pons of PITCH to the WORLD; and other pioneers shaping the creative-tech frontier. The format will include three stages, a startup expo, live competitions, and exclusive investor lounges.

On June 20, Forbes Georgia will host an exclusive side event to bring together GTWT’s most prominent international guests, regional trailblazers, and the ecosystem’s boldest voices, not just to network but to define the next chapter.

Details and tickets are available at gtwt.ge.